Dungeon Command
Dungeon Command is a miniatures skirmish war game published by Wizards of the Coast.
By Aaron T. Huss
Dungeon Command, at its most basic, depicts factions of good versus factions of evil, or at least those who are evil in the eyes of those being portrayed as good. As part of the Rise of the Underdark series of product releases, the war game system launches with a faction of heroes from Cormyr pitted against a faction of drow and their creatures. It is a 2-player game that can be expanded to multi-player with the addition of future releases (and the incorporation of additional rules) that take the action outside of just the underdark and away from the drow. Regardless of that, the game is a skirmish war game depicting small war bands as they clash within the constructed environment.
I grabbed two good friends, Chad and Ben, and we met-up at our friendly local game store Legion Games in Burnsville, MN. The store is a nice, open store with plenty of room for playing games and even a selection of Dungeon Command boxes to boot.
Upon opening the box, it is easy to notice how high of a quality standard is being set with the new Dungeon Command game (expected to follow suit with additional releases). Each set comes with its own portion of the overall battle including pre-painted miniatures, terrain tiles, tokens, in-game cards, and cards for using the contents within the various Dungeons & Dragons board games (an absolute bonus). For easy storage, the inner tray has slots for storing all pieces during game-play and when packed away for storage including a plastic tray with cutouts for the individual miniatures. Everything a single player needs is inside that one box, giving them the tools they need to hopefully conquer their opponent.
From there, the included rulebook was not only handy and informative, but extremely easy to read and follow. Everything was spelled out quite well and every single question that was raised during our game-play was answered by looking through the rulebook (an easy chore as it is quite small). Once the basic rules were culled through, we got straight into set up (I was essentially acting as the GM by reading adjudicating rules as none of us had played before) as Chad and Ben constructed the game board and chose their commander. The game allows the players to act as a commander leading a group of heroes/minions/creatures through the constructed environment to defeat the opponent’s commander. The environment tiles are reversible with a dungeon on one side and a field on the other, we went with the dungeon.
After our commanders had chosen their first troops, strategic movement and battle began. The goal is to essentially “break” the opponent’s commander by reducing their ability to command their troops and whither away the factions morale. This is done by striking against and defeating the opponent’s chosen lackeys as they battle it out within the environment. The commanders themselves do not actually appear, but act more like planeswalkers in Magic: The Gathering. Game play is done by referencing the appropriate cards in one’s hand and on the field. Each character is defined by their stats on the applicable card (no need to memorize those stats) and improved strikes are performed by adding special cards or attacks during game-play. Damage is static (outside of adding bonus cards) and no dice rolling is needed. If you are within range, you hit your opponent and deal the appropriate damage (considering bonus cards and attached cards). When one attacks another, both players are able to respond by playing cards from their hands in hopes of overcoming the other. If successful, the attack is resolved. Then you simply move to the next character and do the same. The mechanics in general are very simple and seem designed for faster game-play.
This is obviously a very stripped-down version of the rules and only represents their most basic forms. For their are many other mechanics involved such as how one is able to play additional characters, attach cards to characters, or be able to play cards from their hand. There is also treasure to claim throughout the dungeon which provide other game bonuses. However, at its most basic, the above description is the bulk of the game-play. Yes it’s hack-and-slash, but it’s designed to be strategic by using the abilities the characters/creatures have and how you combo them with the cards in your hand. It took us about an hour to get through a handful or rounds, but we were running fairly slowly as we continued to absorb the rules with each passing round. After a while, game-play should be fairly quick and significantly less than a single session of much larger war games.
FOR ROLEPLAYERS
Sometimes it’s difficult to transition from being a role-player to being a war gamer. Games like Dungeon Command can fill that niche because you don’t need a massive army, you don’t need to buy pounds of miniatures, and you don’t need to sift through a 100 page rulebook to figure out how to play. Dungeon Command is a great game for the casual war gamer and especially for the role-player who just wants to get their combat fix in without having to sit down to a full RPG session. If desired, you can even slot this into your regular RPG campaign to demonstrate your group fighting their way through this dungeon or maybe as a vignette where you group must come in afterward and deal with the ramifications of the battle. Or, you can simply use the pre-painted miniatures and terrain tiles for your own RPG adventures.
OVERALL
I enjoyed Dungeon Command and find it to be a great addition to anyone’s board game collection. I wouldn’t call it a traditional war game but it can serve to please the appetite for war games as much as it does for board games. There are some definite strategic moves when it comes to using the cards and I thoroughly enjoy the removal of dice and the variability they pose. It’s like a mash-up of a card, RPG, and board game.
RATINGS
Publication Quality: 10 out of 10
Unlike the Dungeons & Dragons board games, Dungeon Command uses fully pre-painted miniatures (not a single color mold, but actually painted). Yes they do not exhibit the quality of a miniature someone hand-painted, but they look excellent and are on par with the rest of the D&D pre-painted miniatures from previous years. The terrain tiles look great, the cards are standard size (not miniature cards), and the tokens are a nice thick cardboard (as are the tiles). All in all, you’re getting a great value of high quality product for only $40 MSRP.
Mechanics: 9 out of 10
Dungeon Command is built upon the 4th Edition mechanics, but only slightly. This is not a full-blown implementation of those mechanics like the D&D board games, but you do see signs of those mechanics in the abilities the creatures and characters have. Outside of that, the actual mechanics for movement, attack, defend, and spell casting are all unique and seem to be designed with the intention of faster game-play to support that “skirmish” feel. After a single game-play, the mechanics felt strong and not forced and we couldn’t find a time when a question was not answered by the rulebook in regards to the game’s mechanics.
Desire to Play: 6 out of 10
While Dungeon Command is a good set up for skirmish war game, it does not appear to be very expansion-friendly. You can add new sets, but adding new characters may prove to be a fruitless effort. One benefit of most war games is that ability to build your army anyway you want to using any type of flavor you desire. However, if you are more concerned with quick game-play, easy set up, easy storage, and treat this like an easy pick-up game, then Dungeon Command’s design of offering sets is probably for you. It may be a tough sell to war gamers when you make the statement that they cannot choose who is in their army. This is not to say that Wizards of the Coast won’t come out with expansion card sets or single-pack miniatures, it’s just that as-is, this war game is more like a board game. There is also the consideration of the terrain. Much like 4th Edition D&D, Dungeon Command is designed to be used on a grid. Yes it can be easy to remedy that, but at its core, the grid is an integral part of the game. Most war games can be played on open terrain.
Overall: 8 out of 10
Dungeon Command is a good war game and helps bridge the gap between role-playing and war gaming. It feels more like a board game styled war game as opposed to a straight-up miniatures war game, but makes a great filler and doesn’t require a huge investment in miniatures, paint, and painting time. It’s usable right out of the box and you can experience hours and hours of great fun without the hassle that larger war games come with. You can even find a way to incorporate this with your RPG or reuse the parts for your RPGs or Dungeons & Dragons board games. It’s a great start and I’d like to see where Wizards of the Coast takes it.
